Outbreak and Extinction Dynamics in Stochastic Populations
Garrett Nieddu successfully defended his thesis for his PhD in Environmental Management.
Posted in: Department Research, Environmental Science and Management PhD
Congratulations to Garrett Nieddu on successfully defending his thesis on Thursday March 29, making him eligible to receive his PhD in Environmental Management!
About the Candidate
Garrett Nieddu is a Ph.D. candidate in the Doctoral Program in Environmental Management and a graduate student in the Department of Mathematical Sciences. His dissertation research is focused on population and disease dynamics and particularly disease extinction in coupled populations. His dissertation examines the stochastic dynamics of population models where the noise is internal to the system and due to the random interactions of individuals.
Mr. Nieddu performed this research as a doctoral student in the PhD program in Environmental Management where he is co-advised by Eric Forgoston and Lora Billings. He studied for his Masters under Dr. David Trubatch (Department of Mathematical Sciences). His research with Department of Mathematical Sciences professors Lora Billings and Eric Forgoston and others has appeared in the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology (2014), Contemporary Mathematics (2015), and Journal of The Royal Society Interface (2017), in addition to conference abstracts and presentations.
Dissertation Abstract
The dissertation examines the stochastic dynamics of population models where the noise is internal to the system and due to the random interactions of individuals. Both numerical methods and analytical methods are used to investigate the population dynamics, including how WKB theory can be used to understand the rare, noise-induced transitions. In particular, the work focuses on (1) extinction dynamics of an isolated bistable population; (2) the outbreak vulnerability and extinction dynamics for a stochastic Ebola virus disease model; and (3) the effect of general coupling between a population and a disease reservoir.
Dissertation Committee
- Dr. Eric Forgoston, Associate Professor, Department of Mathematical Sciences (Chair)
- Dr. Lora Billings, Dean, College of Science and Mathematics
- Dr. Jennifer A. Krumins, Associate Professor, Department of Biology
- Dr. Michael Khasin, Senior Physical Scientist, NASA Ames Research Center